There is still time to comment: Oxford City Council would like your views on the Oxford2050 vision!

Update: The consultation on the Oxford2050 vision is still open, so if you have not yet responded, you still have time to do so. If you don’t wish to do so online, a paper version of the questionnaire has also been developed. That is attached below.

Oxford City Council is seeking your views in order to create a vision for the future of the city, called Oxford2050. We want to engage as many people and organisations as possible across the city – so please contribute your views through the consultation on www.oxford2050.com.

Government forecasts suggest there could be 190,000 living in the city by the middle of the century. That’s 18 per cent above the city’s current population of 161,000 people – and the City Council wants to start thinking now about how the city will operate.

Oxford has changed considerably in the last 33 years. In 1984 buses could drive in both directions down Cornmarket Street, the Ice Rink was completed, and the Clarendon Centre was being constructed. Oxford could look very different 33 years in the future, driverless cars, robots in the home, 24-hour flexible working and augmented high streets could be the norm. The consultation started this week and asks for your views across five key themes – one per week – that cover all aspects of life in the city. The themes are:

NOW UNDERWAY: Week 1 – Oxford’s work and learning – your work, your business, the economy, education and the universities

Week 2 – Oxford’s people and community – you, your family and your community

Week 3 – Oxford’s built and natural environment – your home, your street, green spaces, buildings in the city and the climate

Week 4 – Oxford’s transport and connectivity – your travel in and around the city

The information you provide will be used to set out the aspirations for the city over the next decade. The final Oxford2050 vision will be published in March 2018 as a living document on its own website. However the conversation will not stop, Oxford2050 will eventually become Oxford2060, rather than a single document that gathers dust.

While many other cities in the UK and internationally have created visions for 2050 and beyond, it is the first time Oxford has attempted to create such a long-term statement of intent. The City Council’s Corporate Plan currently covers four years, while its Local Plan covers 20 years.